Iraqi President Jalal Talabani says he believes foreign troops are needed in Iraq for another year or two.

Mr. Talabani said Friday in Cambridge, England that Iraq should be able to recruit its own forces and take over security responsibilities in that time frame.

The Iraqi president also expressed concern about moves in the U.S. Congress to set a timetable for withdrawing American forces.

He said he hopes Congress will help U.S. troops to stay in Iraq until the Iraqi army will be able to replace them and secure the country.

Majority Democrats in Congress have been pressing for a timetable for a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq.

On Thursday, the House of Representatives approved a bill that funds military operations in Iraq only through July. But the measure has a slim chance of passing in the Senate, where Democrats hold a razor-thin margin.

President Bush vetoed an earlier bill that linked funding the war in Iraq to a timetable for withdrawing U.S. troops.